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@einen taies @anni @ffice JOHN W. MELGHER, OF OSHKOSH, WISCONSIN, ASSIGNOR TO HIMSELF AND JOHN J. SPRAGUE, OF THE SAME PLACE.

Letters Patent No. 70,348, dated October 29, 1867.

IMPROVEMENT IN DETAGHABLE WHIFFLE-TREE.

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TO ALL WHOM IT MAY OONCERN: l

Be it known that I, JDHN W..MELCHE'IIL, of the city of Oshkosh, State of Wisconsin, have inventeda new and improved Detachable Whille-Tree; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, making a part of this specification, in 'which- Figure l is a perspective view.

Figure 2 isa front view of cross-bar and whifHe-trec and attachments.

Figure 3 is a longitudinal view of the intermediate connection between whiille-tree and cross-har.

Figure 4 is a fragment of 'whii'ile-tr'ee and detachable hook. l

g g are fragments of the fills, c is a cross-bar, is the intermediate connection between cross-har and whifiletree, and has a mortised opening in the top, a swivel screw-bolt, le, and spring-bolt e, which is `actuated by coil spring s and strap h. a is the -whitiie-tree, with a hinged attachment in front to the intermediate connection at iz', and detachablehook d on the back side. p

This is a device to be used in case of the running away of the horse, or as other circumstances may necessitate, for detaching the tugs or-traces from the whiiie-tree instantaneously, and, with the breeehing orhholdhack straps secured in spring hooks, or other known appliances, enables the animal to free itself from the vehicle by the forward draught.

The invention consists in hinging the whiile-tree at the bottom front centre to an intermediate connection between itself` and the cross-bar, and thence runs back at right angles to the whiiile-tree. The connection b in turn is secured to the cross-bar by a swivel screw-bolt, c. On the back side of the whie-tree, opposite the hinged connection, is a hook, with an eye in the point, which drops down at right 'angles to Whittie-tree, and in ordinary use enters the mortise in the intermediate connection, and is there secured by a spring-bolt locking into it. The spring-bolt is provided with a strap looped in the outer end, an'd from thence passes under the` body of the vehicle, and up through thebottom convenient for use, where, by afirm pull on the strap, the springbolt is drawn back, the hook released, and the forward draught would reverse the Whittie-tree, the tugs be unhi'tched, and the animal would become disengaged, as before described.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

The intermediate connection b, the spring-bolt c, detachable hook d, hinged attachment iz', and swivel-bolt c, when arranged relatively to each other and to the whiftle-treea and cross-bar c, substantially as described for the purposes set forth.

JOHN W. MELCHER.

Witnesses.

W. Gr. Rrrcn, E.' B. KnLLoGe. 

